President Donald Trump has confirmed he is considering limited military action against Iran, after receiving a menu of options that includes strikes on senior leadership figures and key military and government sites, according to US officials cited in multiple reports. Advisers have presented scenarios ranging from targeted strikes on individuals to broader operations that could facilitate leadership change in Tehran if ordered.
Two US officials told Reuters that military planning has reached an advanced stage, with options calibrated for different levels of escalation and timed to coincide with the build‑up of US forces in the region by mid‑March. A US carrier strike group and additional assets are moving into theatre, expanding the president’s ability to order air and missile strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, security organs and government infrastructure.
Trump has nonetheless kept diplomacy open, setting a 10–15 day window for Iran to agree to new nuclear terms and saying that “really bad things” could follow if talks fail. US and Iranian negotiators have discussed a framework that could allow limited, tightly monitored enrichment on Iranian soil, provided there is no pathway to a nuclear weapon, though officials stress that a final agreement is not close. Iran’s senior negotiator Abbas Araghchi (Araqchi) has said a detailed draft counterproposal is being prepared and could be submitted within days, potentially paving the way for another round of talks if both capitals approve.
US officials and outside analysts say Trump sees Iran as weakened by last year’s US‑Israeli strikes on nuclear facilities and proxy forces, as well as by months of protests and a harsh crackdown that rights monitors say has killed thousands. Human rights group HRANA has recorded more than 7,000 verified deaths linked to the unrest, with thousands more cases under review, underscoring the internal pressure on Tehran as it weighs how to respond to US threats.
Iranian Warnings and Regional Risk
Iran’s leadership has responded with explicit threats that any attack, limited or large‑scale, will be treated as a war requiring severe retaliation. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran would view all forms of offensive action — “limited, extensive, surgical, or kinetic” — as an all‑out assault and would react accordingly. Iranian officials have signaled that US bases across the region, as well as countries that allow their territory or airspace to be used in an operation, could be deemed legitimate targets.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior Revolutionary Guard figures have publicly rejected US demands to halt enrichment and dismissed calls for regime change, vowing that Iran has the means to strike back at US assets and regional allies if attacked. Tehran has also used domestic messaging, including a new anti‑US mural in central Tehran, to warn Washington against any strike as US warships head toward the region.
Diplomats and regional officials describe the situation as a narrowing window in which parallel military preparations and negotiations are moving forward at the same time, increasing the risk that a miscalculation or breakdown in talks could trigger a rapid slide into open conflict.
